The Consorcio Provincial contra Incendios de Ourense, run by the Deputación Provincial de Ourense and the Xunta de Galicia, has counted various absences when calculating overtime since 2025. According to trade union representatives and internal documents, these include sick leave, paid special leave, release from duty and recorded hours for union activities. The aim, they say, is to reduce the allowance of 144 hours per person per year—the number of hours by which annual working time should have been reduced after the first collective agreement came into force in 2025.
Specifically, the collective agreement provides for a reduction in the existing annual shift schedule. According to employees, this reduction was not implemented at the start of 2025. Instead of crediting the 144 hours as a flat allowance, the consortium decided to offset absences that had already been paid against this reduction. An internal instruction dated 30 June 2025 is cited as decisive in this regard.
The four regional fire stations in A Rúa, O Carballiño, Verín and Xinzo de Limiaare affected. The vast majority of the approximately 70 employees have filed or announced individual lawsuits to demand full credit for the 144 hours and outstanding payments. The consortium was reportedly quoted as saying it wanted to avoid double payments; no detailed public explanation has been provided so far.
The dispute comes at a time of high operational pressure, after the province of Ourense was particularly badly affected by wildfires in 2025. There were already protests and a prolonged work stoppage in the provincial service in 2025 and 2026. Negotiations on the new collective agreement have also been documented; its existence is confirmed by notices from the Deputación Provincial de Ourense and the Xunta de Galicia. Whether, and in what form, the disputed practice of offsetting absences will stand up legally remains unclear.
Trade unions regard the offsets as a breach of the agreement. According to employees, the consortium points to a restrictive interpretation of working-time accounts. A ruling in the pending cases could order back payments and shape shift planning at the four stations for years to come. No court decisions have been reported so far.
The fact is that the collective agreement provides for an annual reduction of 144 hours. The dispute is over whether sick leave and special leave, release from duty and union hours may be deducted from this reduction. The courts in Galicia will now decide the outcome.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).